Chief Conductor of the Gävle Symphony Orchestra in Sweden, Christian Reif has established a reputation for his natural musicality, innovative programming, and technical command.

Since 2022, Reif has served as Music Director of the Lakes Area Music Festival, a month-long summer festival in Minnesota featuring the nation’s top classical performers in programming that ranges from opera and chamber music to symphonic performances along with commissioned new works. LAMF believes that high quality arts experiences should be accessible to all and operates on a name-your-price ticket model.

Highlights of Reif’s 2025–26 Season include debut performances with the Nashville Symphony, The Florida Orchestra, Danish Chamber Orchestra, Latvian National Symphony Orchestra, and Australian Youth Orchestra. He returns to conduct the Houston Symphony; National Arts Centre Orchestra in Ottawa, Canada; Netherlands Radio Philharmonic; Belgrade Philharmonic; and National Radio Orchestra of Romania.

In 2024, Reif won a Grammy Award for the Nonesuch Records album Walking in the Dark, the debut solo album of classical singer Julia Bullock in which he accompanied her on piano and led London’s Philharmonia Orchestra. The album was praised by Gramophone Magazine as “illuminating” and described Reif as providing “excellent support” for Bullock. In 2020 during the pandemic, Reif and Bullock recorded a series of at-home virtual “Songs of Comfort,” ranging from Carole King’s classic “Up on the Roof” to Schubert’s “Wanderers Nachtlied.” NPR Music featured the duo in a Tiny Desk Concert for their special quarantine edition of the series, and The New York Times highlighted them on their Best Classical Music of 2020 list.

From 2016 to 2019, Christian was Resident Conductor of the San Francisco Symphony and Music Director of the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra, after being the Conducting Fellow at the New World Symphony from 2014 to 2016 and at Tanglewood Music Center in 2015 and 2016.

Anthony J. Maglione is an American conductor, composer, producer, and tenor whose career reflects a deep commitment to artistic excellence, collaboration, and innovation in the choral arts. In addition to his work with the Houston Symphony Chorus, he serves as Director of Choral Studies at the University of Houston and Artistic Director of Cardinalis, a professional choir based in Kansas City. A graduate of Westminster Choir College of Rider University, East Carolina University, and the University of California, Los Angeles, Maglione has established a national reputation as a versatile musician and advocate for compelling contemporary choral music.

As a conductor, Maglione has prepared choirs for performances with artists and ensembles including Joyce DiDonato, The King’s Singers, The Canadian Brass, Boston Camerata, and the Mark Morris Dance Group. A sought-after clinician and guest conductor, Maglione has led honor choirs nationwide and served on the summer faculty at Westminster Choir College from 2008 to 2024.

A regularly commissioned and published composer, Maglione’s compositions have been performed at state, regional, and national conventions and appear on recordings released by Albany, Centaur, GIA Choral Works, and Gothic Records, as well as in television and video games. Maglione is also active as a producer, gaining national attention for his role in Verdigris ensemble’s recording of Betty’s Notebook by Nicholas Reeves, a groundbreaking programmable art music project. As a tenor, he has performed with ensembles including Capella Romana, Spire Chamber Ensemble, and the Grammy-nominated St. Tikhon Choir.

The Houston Symphony Chorus is the official choral unit of the Houston Symphony and consists of highly skilled and talented volunteer singers. Over the years, members of this historic ensemble have learned and performed the world’s great choral orchestral masterworks under the batons of Juraj Valčuha, Andrés Orozco Estrada, Hans Graf, Christoph Eschenbach, Robert Shaw, and Helmuth Rilling, among many others.

In addition, the Chorus enjoys participating in the Houston Symphony’s popular programming under the batons of conductors such as Steven Reineke and Michael Krajewski. Recently, the ensemble sang the closing subscription concerts with the Prague Symphony Orchestra in the Czech Republic. Singers are selected for specific programs for which they have indicated interest. A singer might choose to perform in all 45 concerts, as was the case in a recent season, or might elect to participate in a single series. The Houston Symphony Chorus holds auditions by appointment and welcomes inquiries from interested singers.

Renaissance woman Hélène Grimaud is not just a deeply passionate and committed musical artist whose pianistic accomplishments play a central role in her life. Her multiple talents extend far beyond the instrument she plays with such poetic expression and technical control. Grimaud has established herself as a wildlife conservationist, a human rights activist, and a writer; her deep dedication to her musical career is reflected in and amplified by the scope and depth of her environmental, literary, and artistic interests.

She has been an exclusive Deutsche Grammophon artist since 2002 and her recordings have received prestigious accolades. Her discography includes acclaimed albums such as Credo, Reflection, and a Beethoven album with Staatskapelle Dresden. Her 2010 solo album Resonances and subsequent releases—including Duo with cellist Sol Gabetta and Memory (2018)—highlight her diverse musical range. Her latest project, For Clara (September 2023), revisits Robert Schumann’s Kreisleriana alongside Brahms’s Intermezzi and songs.

In the 2025–26 season, Hélène Grimaud brings her exceptional artistry to George Gershwin’s Piano Concerto in F, performing this iconic work with prestigious orchestras including the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, Houston Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, Tonhalle-Orchester Zürich, and Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, among others. Alongside these highlights, she embarks on a West Coast tour with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra performing Robert Schumann’s Piano Concerto, while additional orchestral engagements underscore the rich breadth of her repertoire. Throughout the season, she continues to captivate audiences worldwide with solo recitals and chamber music performances.

Born in Aix-en-Provence in 1969, Grimaud entered the Paris Conservatoire at 13. In 1987, she gave her debut recital in Tokyo. That same year, conductor Daniel Barenboim invited her to perform with the Orchestre de Paris, marking the launch of her career, which has since been characterized by concerts with major orchestras and celebrated conductors worldwide.